The Ketchum keystone. [volume] (Ketchum, Idaho) 1885-1899, 1887-08-06
sAlTIMe MINES.
Ingenious Plans Worked Unsuccees.
fully on IN Expert.

4 AsAAy VA ~ 0ARVAts
Some ten years ago a friend OF
mine, who had been engaged for
years in mining in California, Ne.
vada and New Mexico. and who is
about the best expert l ever knew,
was employed to examine q mine
which had been favorably reported
upon by three other experts. He
took his own assayer and went to
the mine. 1t did not greatly please
him at the first glance, as the rock
looked dead, and there were no in
dications of any rich ore.
He went through the mine, TAX
ing samples from all parts, which
he turned over to his assayer, fully
expecting that he would find very
little mineral. bet to his surprise
the ore ran about $500 a ton. He
went through the mine again, exer-
cising particular care in the selec-
ton of his samples. The results of
the assay were even greater than
before. He was almost convinced
that the mine was genuine, as he
did not see the least trace of any
sailing process.
He went to the owners and told
them the result Of his examination,
but said that he should make no
report unless they would turn the
mine over to him for forty-eight
hours, and let him do what he
pleased with it. After some hesita-
ton they consented, and the next
morning he took a gang of men to
the shaft and blasted to the right
and left, clearing away the exposed
rock, and taking his samples from
the newly exposed wall. The as
says made from these did not yield
trace of mineral, and he saw that
the mine must have been salted, but
how he could not imagine.
At last he went to the owners and
asked them point blank how they
had done it. They, seeing that
there was no longer the slightest
chance of selling the mine, finally
told him. They had scraped to-
gether a quantity of the soft tale
that is nearly always found adher-
ing to the footwall of mines, and
mixed gold dust with it until the
composition would assay about
$4,000 a ton. They then put it
into shotguns and fired it against
the walls of the mine. The force of
the explosion scattered it over the
entire wall and caused the tale to
penetrate every crevice, SO that gold
would be found in sample taken
from any part of the mine.
On another occasion | myself
came near being victimized. | went
to examine a mine in New Mexico,
and my assays ran very high. The
mine looked we'll, and / thought at
first that there could be little doubt
of its value. But with the conserva-
tism which comes from long expert
ence, determined to exhust every
means of examination, and told the
owners that l wanted to sink the
shaft ten feet deeper and take my
samples from the ore | should find
there. AS | was going home that
night at an unusually late hour. l
chanced to pass the mouth of the
shaft and was surprised to hear
sounds proceeding from it, as if
some one was churning at the bot
tom. Determined TO discover the
cause of these unusual noises !
crept to the platform and looked
down the shaft.
/ saw two men at the bottom, one
drilling a hole and the other work
ing a churn-dasher. Soon the
drilling ceased. The man with the
churn poured some libuid into the
hole and pounded upon it with
something like chnrn-dasher. l
could hear their conversation from
where / lay, and soon found that
what they were doing was of great
personal interest to me. One SAID !:
ave ought to have set guard at
the mouth of the shaft"
Nonsense" said his companion
"no one ever comes here at this
hour"
"Well," said the first, "he can
sink his ten feet after we get
through, and twenty more If ne
wants to-"
had heard enough, and quieteIy
went home. Next morning l saw
the owner and told him | did not
care to sink his shaft any deeper, MS
| | had decided not to recommend
the mine. He became very indig-
nant, and talked SO offensive that
at last / said to him:
any friend you had better keep
quiet. | was at your mine at three
o'clock this morning, and saw what
was going on" f.
His jaw dropped, he looked at
me in surprise, but saw that the
game was up and left without a
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